DAA bids for 10,000 parking spaces

The DAA will have to justify the nature and extent of car parking needed at Dublin Airport as it seeks permission to make more than 10,000 temporary car parking spaces near the airport a permanent fixture.

The DAA will have to justify the nature and extent of car parking needed at Dublin Airport as it seeks permission to make more than 10,000 temporary car parking spaces near the airport a permanent fixture.

One of the parking sites extends over 25.1 hectares near the airport and contains 8,840 spaces.

The second parking site covers 10.6 hectares and has room for 2,040 cars.

The total number of off-site airport parking spaces comes to 25,425, and the number is within a cap of 26,800 spaces that was imposed as a condition for the construction of Dublin Airport's Terminal 2.

An Bord Pleanála has agreed with the DAA that the proposal to make the temporary car parking spaces permanent should be considered a strategic infrastructure project.

The DAA said that its rationale for a permanent permission for the sites is to "confirm its long-term use as part of the airport modal mix".

"Metro North will not remove the need for long-term car parking as the majority of passengers are from outside Dublin, or from the other areas of Dublin not served by the north-south axis of the Metro North," the DAA told the planning watchdog.